The report calls for a new legal framework, national eligibility criteria and a legal duty to assess and meet the needs of disabled children.
And it highlights how outdated and fragmented laws from the 1970s and 1980s have created confusion, inconsistency, and unfairness for families with disabled children who seek help from social care services.
Opportunity to fix an outdated system
Contact’s CEO Anna Bird welcomed the report. She described the proposals as a “a once-in-a-generation opportunity to fix an outdated system that leaves thousands of families with disabled children without vital support.”
Anna added:
“There are more children living with complex health needs and disabilities. But it has become increasingly hard to qualify for social care support. Criteria is shrouded in mystery and different depending on where you live. And the application process has been too focussed on safeguarding and created a culture of parent blame when families are simply asking for help.
“The proposed reforms would not only relieve pressure on families caring 24/7. They also would reduce pressure on schools who are often left to pick up the pieces from social care failings. And it would help reduce poverty. We urge the government to accept the proposals in full and start on reform without delay.”
Take action
Contact is asking families to join us in our calls to the government to implement the reforms. Parents can use this template to email their MP to urge the government to accept the reforms and implement them swiftly. (This will take less than a minute).
The letter asks your MP to write to Josh MacAlister, Minister for Children and Families, urging the government to accept the recommendations and publish an implementation plan within two months.
What are the Law Commission’s key recommendations?
The report includes 40 recommendations for legislative reforms including:
National eligibility criteria to end the post code lottery of care for disabled children.
A new single statutory duty to assess the social care needs of disabled children,
A single duty to meet the eligible social care needs of disabled children, based on national eligibility criteria.
A requirement for direct payments to be sufficient to cover the actual cost of meeting a disabled child’s assessed care needs.
New statutory guidance for local authorities and families
The Law Commission recommends that people assessing disabled children should be required to have ‘the skills, knowledge and competence” to do so. It also calls for a single duty that would enable parent carers to request an assessment for themselves.
Children, parents, and carers should be in developing the new statutory guidance and national eligibility criteria. The Law Commission proposes a phased introduction of national criteria to allow time to assess their impact on local authority budgets.
Contact worked closely with the Law Commission to ensure they spoke parent carers. The final recommendations are in line with our key social care asks for families.
The Government has up to six months to provide an initial response to the Law Commission recommendation and up to a year to provide a full response stating which law reforms they plan to take forward.
Contact is offering free training toparent carersinterested in sharing their story in the media.
We are particularly keen to offer training to parents who are not able to access their young person’s Child Trust Fund /Junior ISA account because their child lacks mental capacity.
If you have a child aged 15-20 unable to access their Child Trust Fund because of their learning disability and you are interested in doing media training, please complete the application form. Places are limited.
The media training sessions will be with an experienced trainer in a supportive environment. The training provides excellent transferable skills in communication and presentation. Interested? Sign up today.
We particularly want to hear from:
Parents who have a young person with a learning disability aged 15-20 who are not able to access their child’s Child Trust Fund money, because they are with a provider who won’t give access without going through the Court of Protection process.
Parents who have struggled to use the Court of Protection process to access their child’s Chid Trust Fund.
Parents who have been put off the Court of Protection process due to the complexity or the costs of needing a GP letter or help from a solicitor.
Parents who have found it difficult to save for their child’s future because of the difficulty accessing Child Trust Funds and Junior ISAs for young people with a learning disability.
80,000 disabled young people in England & Wales risk losing £210 million. A difficult and costly process means many are unable to access the savings held in their Child Trust Fund.
This is a once in a generation opportunity to make the process of asking for social care support simpler and fairer for families with disabled children in England.
Too often support only arrives at crisis point
Families with disabled children know first-hand that the system needs an overhaul. So we look forward to the publication of the report. We will be encouraging the government to take forward the recommendations to improve the process of getting help from social care for families with disabled children.
Amanda Elliot, Contact’s Health and Social Care lead, said:
“Social care is consistently the third most common inquiry to our helpline. Families struggle to understand what support they’re eligible for. We hear from parents whose child the local authority refused a needs assessment or who faced delays getting support. Too often support only arrives when families hit crisis point. Parents also tell us they felt humiliated and blamed when they sought help from social care services.
“That’s why we eagerly anticipate the publication of the Law Commission’s report. And we invite parents to get in touch with us to help us ensure desperately needed change does happen.”
We’d like to hear your experiences
We are keen to ensure parents are heard during meetings with officials and MPs and in the media following the publication of the Law Commission’s report.
If you have an experience of social care that you would like to share, please get in touch with [email protected]
We particularly want to hear from families where:
You and your child have been turned down for social care support despite clear need or what you have been awarded is not adequate. You may have experience of the complaints process.
You and your child have been awarded social care support, but it is not the same as another family whose child has the same condition that you know who live in another county or area.
You and your child have been turned down for social care support because they say that the needs are health related and there is a dispute between the Local Authority and ICB about who should fund the package of care.
You applied for social care support on the basis of need, but it was assessed as a safeguarding concern despite no evidence of neglect or abuse. This has put you off asking for social care support.
We know that school attendance is one of parent’s top concerns on Contact’s helpline.
Children with SEND often have valid reasons for being off school including medical appointments, chronic pain, and anxiety. Contact’s research published earlier this year also revealed that the lack of support in mainstream schools for children with special educational needs or disabilities (SEND) is leading to reduced attendance. We also understand that some parents are concerned when their child receives a behaviour sanction in a school environment that may not be fully meeting their SEND needs.
Behaviour advice to schools makes clear that schools must follow a number of legal duties including making reasonable adjustments under the Equality Act 2010 for disabled pupils, including those with SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities).
This means they must take reasonable steps to avoid substantial disadvantage to a disabled pupil caused by the school’s policies or practices. If a child with SEND displays challenging behaviour, schools should consider whether their needs have contributed to the incident and assess whether applying a sanction is appropriate or lawful. They should also look at whether additional support or adjustments are needed to better meet the child’s needs.
News about the new behaviour and attendance hubs follows last week’s announcement that the government is extending its holiday activities and food programme and the launch its Best Start in Life Strategy, which aims to drive up the accessibility of early years education in England and boost children’s life chances.
Families in Leicester featured in a Channel 4 News piece this week about cuts to school transport for young people aged 16-18 with special educational needs.
Leicester City Council has said they will only fund school transport for disabled young people post 16 in exceptional circumstances. Many families now face uncertainty if they will charged or have to make up a shortfall after receiving a Personal Transport Budget instead of their child’s previously provided school bus or taxi.
Leicester City Council is not the only local authority to cut the transport budget for this age group. There is currently no legal obligation for local authorities to provide transport to post 16 so it has become an easy cost to cut. And we know from our own research and from calls to our helpline that this picture is being replicated across England.
Una Summerson, Head of Policy at Contact, said: “We understand the very real difficulties of increasing costs at a time when local authority budgets are under so much pressure. But taking away transport for young disabled people means they are more likely to drop out of school or college, have fewer qualifications and life skills and there will be higher costs in the future. It is the definition of false economy. We believe greater access to welcoming and inclusive local schools and tackling expensive privatised bus and taxi companies would be a good place to start, but it will take time for this to take effect. That’s why we are calling on the government to close the loophole and ensure fairer access to school transport for disabled students.”
The impact of losing school transport
Contact’s 2024 research showed that where councils provide transport it really works and is beneficial to the whole family:
81% of families with council transport are satisfied/extremely satisfied with it.
58% say it helps promote their child’s independence.
40% of parent carers say it helps them to work.
But once a child turns 16, transport is less reliable. Of those who previously received transport at five-15 years and turned 16:
Almost 60% faced changes to transport (e.g. asked to pay or receive a personal transport budget), including 15% whose transport stopped altogether.
20% are now charged for transport at 16.
40% had to reduce hours or give up work to transport their child themselves.
The government says there is a bursary to help teenagers with the cost of school transport. But our research found that the 16-19 bursary and discretionary funds are neither accessible nor sufficient to cover travel costs. Only 10% of families had applied, with 70% saying they thought they were not eligible or had not heard of it.
What are we doing?
We have launched a parent-led “close the loophole” campaign for fairer transport for disabled students. We’re asking for a system where decisions are based on need, not age.
Immunocompromised children aged six months and over in the UK will continue to be eligible for a Covid booster vaccine this autumn.
Children aged over six months with chronic health conditions like epilepsy, diabetes, asthma and heart disease in “clinical risk groups” will not be offered the vaccine unless they are also immunocompromised.
Immunosuppressed individuals aged six months and over.
Adults aged 75 years and over.
Residents in care homes for older adults.
Previously the Covid vaccine was offered to all people in clinical risks groups, which also included children with Down Syndrome and other health conditions. More information on the definition of immunosuppression is available at the bottom of tables 3 and 4 in Chapter 14a of the JCVI ‘s Green Book on Immunisations.
Annual flu programme starts this September
1 September also marks the start of the annual flu vaccination programme, starting with children and pregnant women. Carers and older adults will receive their vaccinations from October 2025 onwards.
You can find out more about flu vaccines for disabled children on our flu vaccine webpage.
Some mainstream schools have specialist units or resource bases which provide extra support to children who have additional needs.
The government wants to increase inclusion. Could specialist units or resource bases be part of the solution to the current SEND crisis?
Thank you to everyone who shared their experiences of SEN units and inclusion with us.
What are the issues?
When specialist units and resource bases work well, they enable inclusion. However, the success of these units is dependent on how well they are resourced, as well as how effectively they interact with the wider mainstream school. It’s important that they are staffed by those who have appropriate teaching qualifications.
Recently, many local authorities have increased the number of specialist units in mainstream schools in their areas without any government guidance.
If the units are set up in a rush, as a means of reducing costs, they can lack resources. If this happens there is a risk disabled children are segregated from their peers and taught only in the unit, without any interaction with the wider school.
Calls to Contact’s helpline suggests these units vary dramatically from one school to another.
My experience of a specialist unit
Here our education policy lead, Imogen Steele, shares her experience.
“Having been born with cerebral palsy, I attended a specialised unit in a mainstream secondary school, and it was truly amazing. The unit was designed to support a small group of pupils with physical disabilities. I was completely included in the mainstream school. All of my classes took place in the wider school. I used the unit for physio, OT, a place to rest when I needed and a base to catch up on any work I missed. In all of my classes, I was supported by Learning Support Assistants who were attached to the unit.
“However, many units function very differently. I can imagine how isolating it would have been to be stuck in the unit all the time, taught away from my peers in a separate room with different teachers without access to the same opportunities as others just down the corridor. “
What Contact thinks
It’s important that the Department for Education hears from parent carers and young people when shaping policy , so we welcome their survey.
Contact would like to see clear guidance for specialist units to ensure they are appropriately funded, staffed and founded on the principle of inclusion, respecting and protecting every child’s right to a mainstream education, whilst not replacing the role of special schools.
Done well specialist units have the potential for more young people to feel included in their local school community. However, increasing them without suitable regulations or guidance, could lead to them being entirely separate in teaching and location from the mainstream school.
Complaints about education and children’s services are still dominating its casework. Housing has now moved to the second biggest area of concern overtaking adult social care.
The LGSCO investigates complaints about local authorities. It can look at how a council has dealt with a child’s special educational needs. They can also consider complaints about social care and housing. You can’t complain to the Ombudsman about something which you can appeal to the SEND Tribunal about.
Daily battle
Amanda Elliot, Health and Social Care policy lead at Contact, said: “Many families with disabled children use the complaints process of the LGSCO because they are unable to access the support they need for their child. It is a long and time-consuming process to follow the local authority complaints process and then go to the LGSCO, so it is not something entered into lightly. The record number of complaints to the LGSCO is a sad indictment of the daily battle that parents talk about and the state of the public services they rely on.
“It’s why we believe the government should implement the Law Commission’s proposals in full and why it’s crucial that the forthcoming SEND reforms create a system that works for every child – strengthening support for children who do not have an Education, Health and Care plan, while protecting current rights.”
Contact’s social care asks include a separate social care assessment pathway and national eligibility criteria.
The NHS is urging parent carers across the UK to check whether their child has had one or both doses of the MMR vaccine. This vaccine protects against measles, mumps and rubella, three serious illnesses that are spreading again.
Measles spreads easily and there have been outbreaks in England and Scotland this year, mainly in unvaccinated children under 10. This month, a child in Liverpool died after getting the disease. Summer is known to be a riskier time as families travel to countries where there are also outbreaks.
Health chiefs say it is very important that every child gets both doses for full protection. The number of children who have got the first dose of the MMR vaccine is nearly at target levels, but there is a big drop in the number of children getting the second dose.
The vaccine is free and available anytime, so if your child has missed one or both doses or is now older, it’s never too late to catch up.
How do I check if my child has had the MMR vaccine?
Look in your child’s Red Book under the vaccination section.
Call your GP surgery and ask them to check your child’s vaccination record
Speak to your child’s health visitor if they have one
How do I book an MMR Vaccine?
There are various ways to book an MMR vaccine depending on where you live in the UK. But in all four nations, the vaccine is free and can be booked at any time.
England: Call your GP practice to book. Some areas also have walk-in clinics which are listed on council websites.
Scotland: Contact your local NHS immunisation team (full list by area here) or contact your GP.
Wales: Contact your GP
Northern Ireland: Contact your GP or visit nidirect.gov.uk for local clinics.
Need more information or want to speak to someone?
Public health bodies say that some communities, such as ethnic minority groups, newly arrived migrants, and people whose first language isn’t English, face more barriers to getting vaccinated and have lower rates of vaccination. This can be for many reasons including not knowing how to get vaccinated and finding it harder to access information. It’s also understood that parents from all communities may have concerns about the vaccine and its safety.
If you’re worried or have questions, speak to your GP practice. They can explain the process and talk through any concerns you might have.
Useful resources
Easy-to-read leaflets and videos in many languages are available at:
We are now into the second week of the summer holidays in England and Wales, and the last remaining weeks of the summer holidays in Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Lots of parents have been sharing their experiences of the difficulties finding suitable holiday clubs and childcare during the holidays for children who have a disability or additional need.
Turned away
Anna Bird, Chief Executive at Contact, said: “Although holiday clubs are meant to welcome and include children with additional needs, in practice this often doesn’t happen. Many children and young people with additional needs are turned away because they have personal care needs, or the club can’t provide the 1-1 care they require.
“Families who do find a suitable club with availability, say it’s just for a few hours a day and for two days a week, not 9-5 Monday to Friday which would enable them to work.
“We’ve heard from parents who have had to give up jobs they enjoy, others have had to reduce the hours they work. For disabled children the lack of social contact and routine can lead to increased anxiety and sensory dysregulation. This can increase needs at home and also upon their return to school.”
Last year, as part of our strategy development, Contact asked parents what service they would most like to see and after an accessible education, parents said they would most like access to after school clubs, holiday clubs and community activities.
Give up work or unpaid leave
Ana Chivu from Barnsley has had to give up work for a medical company, to look after her daughter who is non-verbal autistic as there was no care available during the holidays. She spoke to the Daily Mirror about her experience.
Natalie Woods lives in Brighton with her three children. Her 11-year-old son goes to special school and needs 1-1 care. She works full-time as a therapist, but it having to take three weeks unpaid leave as there are not enough suitable holiday clubs available.
She said: “There are only two providers in Brighton that provide 1-1 or 2-1 care, so capacity is extremely limited. I really want my son to be getting together with friends and peers, it’s a social necessity and he has every right to do that. Instead a lot of the time he will be at home with a PA because there is so little available.”
Parent carers take action
Shumi Plastow and Emma Briggs, have set up their own wellbeing groups for parents of children with additional needs in Northamptonshire. Northants SEND Mummas has proved so popular that the friends applied for funding to provide stay and play sessions during the holidays.
Shumi said: “Parents do need to stay, so it is not a substitute for holiday clubs, but we are providing a chance for families to get out the house, socialise with others and have fun. We have organised activities such as silent disco, chocolate making, mini farm visit, bouncy castle and gardening workshop. Something for everyone. Children with additional needs deserve to be able to access stimulating and regulating activities during the school summer holidays. Siblings and dads are also welcome to come.”
Anna Bird added: “We need to prioritise provision of holiday clubs for disabled children. There are some great ideas including special schools taking it in turns to provide care for one or two weeks in the holiday to accommodate local disabled children. In addition, we need to address holiday club and childcare workforce issues, ratios of staff to children and special educational needs training to ensure more disabled children are able to enjoy clubs in the holidays.”
Esther-L, lives in north London and is mum to 7-year-old Eva and her sister, Zara, who is 3. Eva has a bowel and heart condition and has spent long periods in hospital, including Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital (GOSH) in central London where she met Jill from Contact’s By Your Side Team. Here Esther shares how at such a stressful time, why it was so reassuring to be able to talk to Jill from Contact:
“Eva is a happy-go-lucky little girl but has been going through it health-wise. Her ongoing heart and other medical conditions mean that she sometimes has to spend lots of time in hospital – usually 2 weeks at a time. But the last time I spent 4 months at GOSH with her, and no one could have prepared us for that. And, to add to the stress, at the same time I was also dismissed from my job, which I had started a few months earlier, as I desperately tried to juggle things at home, work, and hospital. This added to the enormous stress I experienced during this time.
“I said hello, got chatting to Jill from Contact – and never looked back!”
“During this long hospital stay, I spoke to the social work team there who suggested I apply for Disability Living Allowance (DLA) for Eva to help pay for some of my extra costs. My mum, seeing how the stress was getting to me and how upset I was, suggested getting in touch with a charity called Contact, who she had read about, to see if they could help. And then coincidentally, I happened to see Jill from Contact’s By Your Side team setting up a table and putting out loads of leaflets about the support they offer as I was making my way to the hospital canteen. I said hello, got chatting – and never looked back!
“During weekly visits to Contact’s desk at GOSH, they helped me with practical things like filling in the DLA form, which has made an enormous difference to my family. They also pointed me in the direction of the Family Fund to see if there were any grants my family was eligible for. I was able to receive payments to help with things like travelling to hospital and laundry costs as a result. I told Contact’s By Your Side team about losing my job and was encouraged to challenge my employer’s decision. Contact even put us forward to have Eva’s wish granted through their partnership with Make a Wish UK. We spent a few days as a family at Disney UK, and both Eva and Zara loved it. It was such a special time for us because Eva’s medical conditions mean it can be difficult to get away as a family because it takes such a lot of forwarded planning.
“Being a parent with a child in and out of hospital can be scary”
“As well as the practical help Contact’s By Your Side team provides, at such an emotional and worrying time, it’s also just lovely to see a friendly, familiar face. During our 4-month stay at GOSH, it was comforting to know that Contact would be there every Wednesday with information and support – and a smile. That continuity and knowing that Contact was at the hospital every week was reassuring, and I was never made to feel like I was being a burden in any way. Being a parent of a child who is in and out of hospital, often for very long periods, can be scary. As a parent, you go through an emotional rollercoaster, and of course, you don’t want to be upset in front of your child. Hospitals are big buildings with lots of people, but they can make you feel so lonely at times. It would be great if Contact could be at more hospitals so parents there with their seriously ill child feel less alone and stressed and that there is actually someone who understands what they are going through and is there just for them.”
Our recent Post-16 Transport Q&A highlighted the widespread confusion and challenges many families face when navigating travel support for young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).
Our helpline team received dozens of questions from parent carers across England.
Below are the key themes that came up most frequently, along with the guidance we provided:
Statutory v discretionary duties
Before age 16, transport for eligible pupils with SEND is a legal duty under the Education Act 1996. However, once a young person turns 16, local authorities are no longer required to provide free transport. Instead, they must publish a post-16 transport policy outlining what support is available, and they are allowed to charge a contribution. This discretionary duty continues until age 19.
Post-19 rights
From age 19 onwards, the law shifts again. Under Section 508F of the Education Act, local authorities must provide free transport if it’s necessary for the young person to access education or training. This duty applies to adult learners with an EHCP and must be based on individual needs.
Annual reapplication requirements
Many parents asked whether they need to reapply each year for post-16 transport. The answer is yes. Most councils require an annual application even if the young person is staying on the same course.
Medical, physical, and complex needs
Families highlighted concerns about how medical conditions (e.g. epilepsy, diabetes) and complex SEND profiles (autism, ADHD, learning disabilities) affect travel eligibility. Local authorities must consider whether a young person can reasonably be expected to travel independently. If not, transport should be arranged.
Financial contributions and bursaries
Most local authorities request an annual contribution for post-16 transport. However, families facing financial hardship can often apply for a reduced fee or seek support through the 16-19 Bursary Fund. There are two bursary types: vulnerable (up to £1,200) and discretionary (for costs like transport and meals).
Personal travel budgets and independent travel training
Instead of council-arranged taxis or minibuses, some areas offer personal travel budgets or support for independent travel training. These options should only be provided where appropriate and suitable for the individual young person
Motability
Having access to a Motability car does not mean families must use it to provide transport. Local authorities cannot assume availability or use of the vehicle without consent. This was upheld in an Ombudsman decision, which clarified that personal benefits cannot be used to discharge the council’s duty.
Transport for non-EHCP or part-time courses
Transport is generally only provided for full-time courses specified in an EHCP. Evening classes or leisure courses not listed in the plan may not qualify unless exceptional circumstances apply. However, changes can be requested through an EHCP review.
How to appeal or challenge decisions
Parents can appeal transport decisions through a two-stage process. If unsuccessful, they can escalate complaints to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman. It is important to refer to relevant parts of the local policy and provide supporting evidence including EHCP content, professional letters, and details of hardship or risk.
Still have questions?
Our helpline team is here to help. Call us on 0808 808 3555 or submit an enquiry.
Thank you to everyone who submitted a question and helped highlight the urgent need for clearer, fairer, and more consistent transport support for disabled young people in further education.
As part of our Rare Conditions Network, which was set up thanks to funding from the Pears Foundation, we are now excited to start sharing some of the new resources that have been created.
These resources have been created by rare groups themselves, for other groups to use or take inspiration from. Resources include packs for schools, activity packs, videos and information for Dads, and a transition tool to support young people with rare conditions.
Check out our Rare Conditions Network Toolkit
We also want to remind you of our online Rare Conditions Network Toolkit packed with information to help you run your support group. We’ve got lots of information on managing volunteers including advice on volunteer management, key policies and training.
We’ve also got a social media presentation on how to engage with families of children with rare conditions online.
If your disabled child or young person is getting ready to move into post-16 education or training, you may have questions about transport support from your local authority.
To help you get the information you need, we’re inviting families in England to send us their questions about post-16 school and college transport – and then get a personalised response from our expert helpline team.
This is for families in England only. Submissions will close once we reach 50 questions, so we recommend getting yours in early!
How it works:
Parent carers can submit a question using our short online form which asks for:
Your name, email, and local authority
The age of your child or young person (16–18, or 19–24)
Whether they have an EHCP
Your question about post-16 transport
Our team of expert helpline advisers will then carefully review each submission – and you’ll receive a personalised written response within a few days.
Once we’ve answered the questions you’ve sent us we’ll share a round-up of key themes and advice tips on our social media and the Contact website.
If you miss out on asking your question, have a younger child or live in Wales, Northern Ireland or Scotland, you can still contact our helpline for advice on 0808 808 3555, select option 1, or complete our Helpline online enquiry form.
With forecasters anticipating temperatures of up to 31 °over the next few days, it’s important for parents, carers, and schools to take extra care to protect disabled children, who may struggle with the heat and keeping hydrated due to medical conditions, medications, or sensory issues.
What schools and early years settings should do
Schools have a legal obligation and duty of care to ensure that all pupils, including those with complex needs or EHCPs, are kept safe and supported, this includes during hot weather. Government guidance for England recommends schools and settings implement the following measures:
Pre-cool buildings by opening windows overnight or early morning, then closing them when outside temperatures rise.
Shade windows using blinds or curtains (while maintaining ventilation).
Turn off electrical equipment and lights not in use to reduce internal heat.
Use mechanical, oscillating fans when indoor temperature is below 35 °C, but avoid if hotter, as fans may worsen matters.
Limit outdoor activities, in particular when temperatures exceed 30 °C.
Relax uniformrules to allow loose, light-coloured clothing, and removal of blazers and jumpers.
Ensure children wear wide-brim hats and apply broad-spectrum sunscreen (SPF 30+, UVA-rated) when outside, reapplying every 2 hours and after swimming or towelling.
Provide plenty of cool drinking water, encouraging more fluid intake than usual.
In addition schools should also:
Adjust school timings, move lessons or breaks to cooler parts of the day.
Use cooler classrooms, rearranged to avoid direct sun exposure.
Increase cross-ventilation by opening doors and windows where safe to do so.
Practical tips for families
Use cooling sprays, or cold flannels at home.
Keep rooms shaded and well-ventilated and use frozen water bottles in front of fans.
Encourage fluid intake via fun cups, syringes, straws, or water-rich foods.
If your child has an EHCP, this is also an opportunity to request a temporary or permanent reasonable adjustment, citing this government guidance, should your child suffer in the heat due to medication they take, a medical condition that they have or sensory difficulties they may experience.
Watch for signs of heat stress, exhaustion, and heatstroke. Provide immediate response by moving vulnerable children to cooler areas, sponge spraying, applying cold packs to neck/armpits, and if needed, calling NHS 111 or 999.
You can also sign up to Weather-Health Alerts via UKHSA and the Met Office for actionable heat alerts.
For more information about how to cope in a heatwave:
MPs on the Education Committee are calling for urgent reform of disabled children’s social care after an inquiry found disabled children and their parents were “treated with suspicion” and subjected to “inappropriate assessment” when reaching out for help.
Anna Bird, Chief Executive of disability charity Contact said: “We warmly welcome the Education Committee’s report on social care, in particular their recommendations calling for national eligibility for disabled children and their families to access help from social care. The families we support will recognise the committee’s assessment that the current social care system overlooks disabled children. It is far too hard for families with disabled children to qualify for social care support and there’s a lack of transparency, so it is unclear who is entitled. So many families struggle on without short breaks or direct payments providing enormous amounts of care alone, sometimes for many years.
“Fixing disabled children’s social care is a crucial part of fixing the SEND system because they are key pieces of the same jigsaw. Schools are currently dealing with the fallout of a lack of social care support for disabled children and their families. We are delighted the committee is backing the Law Commission’s proposals for reform. We hope the government takes their recommendations seriously and implements them in full. This would be a huge step towards improving the lives of disabled children and their families.”
The committee’s recommendations are in line with Contact’s key social care asks for disabled children. Evidence submitted to the inquiry by Contact, the Disabled Children’s Partnership and the National Network of Parent Carer Forums are quoted in the report.
The Education Committee says there is an “urgent need” to improve access to short breaks, respite care and holiday provision. It was “unacceptable” over half of parents couldn’t access the short breaks and respite services they needed. The report also condemned the culture of ‘parent blame’ that families experiences when asking for help.
“It is deeply concerning to hear that parents of disabled children are being treated with suspicion and undergoing inappropriate assessment processes when reaching out for help.”
Committee inquiry recommendations
The Department for Education:
Must set how it will implement the proposals in the Law Commission’s review of disabled children’s social care no later than two months following the publication of the review, (due in September) shortly including a timeframe and assessment of any spending required to implement the proposal.
Must review the training provided to children and families social workers and ensure that social workers are being adequately trained in the specific needs of disabled children and their families and the distinct type of assessment processes needed for this group.
Should introduce national eligibility criteria for disabled children’s social care and ensure that local authorities are clearly communicating these to families.
Should conduct a review of the availability of short breaks, respite care and holiday provision for disabled children to understand where the shortages are most acute.
Should work with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to fund local authorities to be able to offer this provision to all families entitled to it.
Should ensure that the specialist workforce for disabled children is included in the children’s social care workforce strategy.
About the Education Committee
The Education Committee is a House of Commons select committee of MPs that scrutinises the work of the Department for Education (DfE). While the committee cannot force the Department for Education to act on its recommendations, it is often powerful and influential vehicle for shaping policy.
We are delighted to announce that our Contact Scotland team have been awarded a grant of £97,774 over the next three years from the Health & Social Care Alliance (The Alliance) – the national third sector membership organisation for the health and social care sector, representing 3,500 members.
Contact Scotland will use the money to support unpaid parent carers in Scotland who self-identify as having a disability and/or health condition, to better self-manage their health.
The work carried out by our team in Scotland thanks to this funding is one of 31 projects who received a total of £1.9 million from the Alliance.
The funding aims to help support people in the early stages of a long term condition diagnosis, disabled people or an unpaid carer to develop skills to manage their own health and wellbeing and reduce barriers to health and social care support and services.
Susan Walls, Contact’s manager in Scotland says: “We are thrilled to have been awarded this funding which will help Contact Scotland support unpaid carers to better self-manage their health while caregiving for their disabled children.
“It is an incredible donation that will transform the way we support parent carers and we are so excited to be partnering with The Alliance to deliver this three-year project.”
In it they highlight the increasing cost of school transport and cite one of the reasons as being children with special educational needs travelling long distances because there are no suitable school places locally. The report makes recommendations for reducing the home to school transport bill for local authorities.
One of those suggestions is a 3 mile eligibility criteria (including most SEND students), at the discretion of local authorities. Contact is concerned about this as we have seen the impact of “local discretion” on Post 16 transport where it is being stripped away across the country. This criteria will not work for many SEND children and young people.
Anna Bird, Chief Executive of Contact, said: “We are concerned that some of the proposals in today’s report dilute parents’ rights and may not meet the needs of pupils and students with special educational needs. These include the use of pick up points, the promotion of independent travel, the increase of Personal Transport Budgets and the proposal to transport to the nearest suitable school rather than a parent’s preferred school. All of these proposals could have a significant and detrimental impact on SEND children and young people, limiting choices and outcomes.
“We understand the very real difficulties of increasing costs at a time when local authority budgets are under so much pressure. We believe greater access to welcoming and inclusive local schools and tackling expensive privatised bus and taxi companies would be a good place to start.
“We hear first-hand from parent carers across the country that a lack of council provided transport can have a devastating impact – with students sometimes missing out on school and families forced to give up work and left in financial hardship. It is unfair to the balance the books on the backs of disabled children and young people. “
The positives
The report positions transport as playing a “vital role in our education system”. And, it recognises that transport is linked to the current failures in the system – where many disabled children and young people just cannot go to their local provision. It also recognises that journeys are necessary, and families need support with them.
It is encouraging that the voices of parent carers are included and that the report refers throughout to the specific circumstances of many disabled children/young people.
“Assistance with travel to school can play an important role in reducing some of the barriers faced by families with children with SEND, with which other families do not have to contend.”
The report notes the importance of council transport for many families with SEND children and young people and refers to our Contact survey where 81% of families receiving transport were satisfied with the service.
Inline with our Close the Loophole campaign the report recognises the gap in transport for 16-18 year olds and the impact on SEND families. It proposes that transport should be available for eligible children from reception to Year 13 (with further proposals for Year 13 onwards for SEND students).
What we’re doing
We’re campaigning for change with our Close the Loophole campaign to fix the loophole in law for 16-18 year olds transport.
We’re running a project looking at home to school and college transport thanks to funding from the Motability Foundation.
We can help – if you need information or advice on school/college transport look at our online resources for transport in England or contact our Helpline.
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